Tale of a Red Haired Puppet Master
by Kashi-Cookie-Monster
Summary: Sasori X Deidara oneshot, at the request of Evangeline-angel. Was there ever a better team than the puppeteer and the bomber? Enjoy  .


**A/N - A little Sasori X Deidara request fic for Evangeline-angel. 3 Enjoy!**

_Perfect._ Sasori's lips tightened in effort and satisfaction, a pleasant glint entering his eyes as he watched his chakra enter the meticulously crafted wood, swirling around inside the head where he had lifted the cut out piece to perform the technique, and shining out eerily and beautifully from the rest of the closed up body.

A muffled rustling made its quiet way down the hall, accompanied by only one set of footsteps but two chakra signatures. In a room on the right of the hallway a pale redhead man placed down his work but stayed facing away from the door, same as he always did when that man came near to him. He had a chilling and penetrating presence that demanded attention, and brought Sasori to gravitate around him. Itachi was a constantly masked man, who could stay in control, and demanded respect. When Sasori had joined he had been everything that he wanted to be.

His door opened just as quietly as Itachi's footsteps, and Sasori turned around to find both Itachi and the teenage delinquent stood directly in front of him, the blonde slightly further back than his dark haired companion, and staring at his raven locks like he wanted them to explode. Sasori didn't blame him. It was like a kicked dog being dragged around on a lead by it's master.

"Newbie," Itachi murmured as he gestured from said being to Sasori. Itachi's features softened minisculely as his eyes met the redhead's. "He's with you. Take care of him." His penetrating gaze stayed a few moments longer before he vanished into a mass of birds.

_Take care of him._

Sasori looked him from face to feet and back again. It was still amazing that someone this young and frail was their legendary bomber.

Sasori turned away before tilting his head back again. "Name's Sasori." He offered. Deidara didn't blink. He already knew, and studied his surroundings carefully. Sasori was a neat person by rule, and the only mess that he created was from his work, the wood chippings or flakes of skin embedding in the carpet and causing dust. The dust was the main problem, and he didn't often work from beings that were once alive now. Animating them did not make them alive and more than sleeping made him dead. And he enjoyed the hours of fierce concentration as he fought to create something beautiful and perfect to work with him as a killing tool. He liked watching his creations take shape, and then a semblance of life.

Deidara's eyes lingered on the vessel that he had been working on, his eyes greedily soaking up the sight of the chakra emanating from it in an unknown and powerful technique. He didn't step forward, but he leaned closer as he watched it with intense fascination. He could see the chakra swirling; changing and moulding into something new, something different from Sasori's own as it fitted to it's new body. It moved in ways similar to Deidara's own contraband technique, and he felt shivers and warmth sweep over him as he watched it. Sasori saw this as he watched him.

"Follow me." He broke the spell and turned away again before he was met with Deidara's nod. He was new. Of course he would follow. Sasori could be about to kill him and he would follow. He may be a criminal, but that didn't mean that he was not naïve. And he had already lost the choice to leave.

"You will be staying in the room next to mine. They are connected by a siding door that will we **not **lock at any point in time. Had this been the old base, there wouldn't even be that privacy. We work together as a unit, there is no modesty or pride between us. We are to work efficiently as one. Its simple. Just don't do anything that you wouldn't want me to see."

Deidara raised an eyebrow with a smirk, and Sasori thanked the non-existent Gods that he didn't comment. After a brief stint with Kakuzu, he didn't need to hear anything about weirdos masturbating. Lets just be honest and say that that man could change his body in ways that were just disgusting to even contemplate. To see… Sasori shuddered.

"You'll have to watch your step here if you feel like living, brat. And I mean that both literally and figuratively. I know people who will kill you for stepping on their little toe. If you can beat them in a fight, then more fool for you, but anger Leader, Konan or Pein and you might as well slit your own throat. God knows that that'll be less painful."

Deidara's head lifted up slightly at his words, and Sasori internally cursed himself for the slip of the tongue. Unless you were a psycho like Hidan, any mention of religion was blasphemous towards Leader. Leader was their God, and that was what they were working towards for the world. Sasori had joined as much for sympathy towards his objectives than he had because he was bloodthirsty. He'd tried so hard to recreate his parents, in the beginning. He had wanted so badly to pretend, but in the end the sight of their unmoving features, and their limbs controlled by his strings was too much. It hurt to see them, it always brought about a weakness about him. And so he had left them behind.

"Here is the main hall. All you'll need to know is this, our room and the kitchen. You don't need to know where anyone else's room is. We aren't here to be chummy."

_Because it just makes this all the more difficult._

Sasori scowled as images of the past filled his mind. Yeah, it was definitely better to remain unattached. Caring only got you hurt, usually in the most brutal of ways. Deidara's teeth glinted as he smiled widely.

"I got it, un."

"Good." Sasori's eyes flickered over his face again quickly and he gave a small nod before turning away again to lead Deidara off to the kitchen. His voice wasn't impertinent, he was just self assuredly stating a fact. He held an odd amount of confidence for someone so young, in a place full of the bad guys. His confidence would do him good here. If nothing else, the Akatuski had a respect for people who knew their skill and used it well. No amount of skill was useful if you were going to freeze up and beg for mercy on the battlefield. And they couldn't take chances if it came down to them being captured and 'questioned'. Now they just had to hope that this newbie was entirely committed to the cause.

"Where's Itachi's room?" Deidara asked casually with the glint of a smirk in his eyes. Sasori sighed. Petty feuds and grudges would not do the kid any good.

"I don't know," He lied. "And if I did I wouldn't tell you."

Deidara nodded, and looked like he was about to say more, but wisely didn't. Sasori glanced at him.

"Who are you loyal to?"

"Myself." Deidara said without hesitating. "But before that, my art."

"Wrong. You are loyal, to Leader, to Pein, and to Akatsuki."

"No, I'm not. But if I am willing to follow orders, where is the damn difference, un? I assure you that I am not a coward."

"Heh. I sure hope not brat. Spout any more shit like that around here and then you will know what it is like to be brave."

"Its not bravery, because I am not afraid."

"Those words may have just saved your life, child." A smooth, cool voice echoed from the shadows, reeking of both femininity and authority. She stepped forward and let her cold dark eyes meet Deidara's uncovered one. "You remind me of someone I used to know… in some ways. Only the weak truly work for themselves."

"Protecting myself is not a weakness, un, and you should be happy that I do it."

"Heh," Konan cracked a slight smile, but it did not reach her eyes. The effect was menacing. "And why is that?"

"Because I will not betray you, or try to switch alliances lest it be in my best interests, un. Here is where I can find the few people who can defeat me, albeit not using conventional methods…" His voice trailed off at the end, and his foot scuffed the floor as he glared at it, a line furrowed between his eyebrows.

"Yes, I heard of your defeat by Itachi. You are cocky. You would not have lost any pride if you'd came along willingly."

And with that she was gone again, and Deidara looked even more infuriated than he had by being defeated and brought here. Clearly losing was a sore spot for him. Nevermind. If he lost again, he likely would not be able to throw a tantrum about it. It was succeed and survive. The two objectives did not separate often, and Sasori highly doubted that this child would ever retreat.

888

_He'd willingly retreated._

Sasori frowned as he reassessed the man in front of him. Faced with the Kazekage, someone so well known and powerful, the blonde had retreated rather than stay, tempted by the prestige of defeating him. He wasn't just here on a power trip. His ego genuinely wasn't the size of this building. And he hadn't come back horrendously damaged. He assessed the situation and understood his limitations. He wasn't just thinking like a full-of-it child.

This knowledge floored Sasori. Deidara was attractive yes, and his personality was quite endearing. But up until now he had been… a _child_. Someone to unwillingly put up with. Sasori's respect for him grew.

"Next time, un, I won't fail." his voice rang solidly as he openly met Sasori in the eye and made his promise. "I saw no point in staying, and dying if there was nothing in it for us. If I could have won, I would have."

Sasori smiled lightly at him, and very quickly placed a hand on his shoulder. "Its alright. You did as any of us would have, and you did it well." He removed his hand and his tone hardened a little. "The only problem now is that they know of your skill, and that you are with us."

"He already knew we were hunting him, un?"

Sasori scowled at him. "Obviously."

"Well un, that's us making things easier for ourselves."

The puppet master cracked a smile. "Absolutely."

"Why are we deliberately making things difficult for ourselves?"

"Because sometimes the easiest option isn't what we want, or something that we mistakenly ignore. Leader wants us to get the Biju, he doesn't particularly care that they know. If we are strong enough, we will get it, if not then we likely would not have gotten it anyway."

Deidara looked serious for a very brief moment, staring intently up at the stars that they were laying under in disguise. Due to the territory, they couldn't find a cave or the like, and they had plans here for tomorrow that required them to stay. Sleeping outside wasn't something that they had done often in the few months that they had worked together, due to the danger, but Deidara couldn't deny how much he enjoyed it. He liked the feeling of space around him to move and explode in, he liked the way that he could draw in chakra from nature, and _feel_ his surroundings. He liked the way that the crisp air smelt, and he enjoyed Sasori's presence.

"Then I hope that you are always strong enough, Sasori, un."

The redhead frowned. "Why?"

"I don't think that I'd like to outlive you. I want you to stay, un, and remember me."

"I'll always remember you. And what are the chances of my failing? I can't be killed."

"You can, just as long as they find your weakness, un."

Sasori scowled at the line of conversation. "At the moment, brat, my only weakness is you."

"We'll have to get rid of me quickly then."

"That's not amusing."

"It was. I never wanted to die, but now I _want _to live. There is a difference in that, and if you think you'll find it, un."

Sasori had always gone to extreme measures to make sure that he was safe. All the way through to making himself a puppet, he had used himself as a tool for self-preservation and vengeance until he no longer fought eve for that. He was a master, he knew he could win. His skills were eternal, and in his puppet's body, we wouldn't know any real pain from injury, or any of the things that plagued beings that entered old age.

This is probably why he appealed to Deidara so. The man believed the exact opposite, his work was as destructive and fleeting as Sasori's was poisonous. Even though he strove to be remembered for his art, he also wanted to be remembered forever. So who better to remember him than an eternal being? Deidara was certain that he wouldn't ever get to the stage of real aging either. He wasn't, supposedly speaking, suicidal, he just knew that he had to die sometime, and by his job and his methods, he knew that that would likely be sooner rather than later. He didn't like to think of death. But he had come to terms with it.

They didn't really understand each other when it came to either of these topics, but that was what really motivated them to try. They were so used to being different from others, for having no one care what they thought or felt or did, so long as they killed the right people, that any kind of casual interaction had almost become a myth. It felt odd now, for Sasori to be stroking his hand along Deidara's refreshingly warm, and life filled cheek. It felt weird having real, smooth, human skin beneath his own. It felt weird that he wasn't questioning it. He could feel every muscle move as Deidara's lips quirked up into a gentle but reserved smile. He felt so alive.

Deidara loved the way Sasori felt when they touched. He was so much more gentle here than anywhere else, so much more caring than anyone also who had laid hands on him. His hand felt like it was memorising his cheek and jaw, carefully mapping out each and every detail that would otherwise be totally insignificant and unknown. No one had ever wanted him like this. He had barely allowed himself to hope that anyone ever would.

Sasori knew this. He had learned many things during the time that he had been aware of the explosive blonde. He remembered feeling the same way; hell, even now the feeling of self worth was a rarity. It was something that, to Sasori, had to be given to you by someone else; after all , what good was it to feel special, important, if you only felt that way to yourself, because of something that you had done? No, the only time that he had really felt like that after his parents' death had been when he as with Itachi. He had _understood_. He, someone so much better than him in every way shape and form, had worshipped his body, strove to bring _him_ pleasure, and given to him with only a minimal taking. Sasori had needed that, and in the hours and days afterward the mere feeling he got from eye contact with the man was enough to bring tears to his eyes. It was like everything was thrown into perspective that time when he had let Itachi take care of him.

_Take care of him._

Dragging his lower lip into his mouth to wet it, Sasori lowered his eyelids and bent into Deidara's soft, motionless face to breath over his still lips. Deidara let out a breath that he hadn't known that he was holding and leant closer, his soft lips resting on Sasori's own. This was reason enough to break that final physical distance between them as Sasori let loose, a ragged breath leaving him as he fully pushed his lips into Deidara's his tongue sweeping over his lower and then upper lip, dominating him. He flicked his tongue inside, up against the roof of his mouth and over his tongue, caressing it, and slipping down to lick the underside in a way that he would do similarly to another part of his anatomy.

His arms raised up and closed tightly around his thin body, massaging over his entire back, and tangling into his long blonde hair, tugging until it was free of it's restraints. It flowed out easily, none of it becoming caught as it cascaded down his back and over his shoulders like air. A cool breeze flew past, causing both men to shiver, and Deidara's golden locks to wrap themselves around Sasori too, as if he were in a cocoon. In a way, he was. He felt secure, this was different from the cool pretend embrace from his puppets, that he had used as a child, wanting to feel loved. He wasn't pulling any strings.

Time seemed to come to a halt as they lost themselves, hours turning to minutes as their lips touched and hands moved, and clothing was distractedly shed. Deidara looked so perfect to him, so beautiful. So gentle. And when he entered him, despite the lack of anything to ease the process, it didn't hurt. It felt above the pleasure and _feel, _right. When Deidara's lips pressed down on his shoulders and spine, it felt different from when he had been with Itachi, it sent jolts of happiness and ecstasy through him, an intense pleasure that came not from the sex, but from being _together._

When Deidara came, Sasori did too, and his last thoughts as he drifted off were of a certain blonde haired man that he suddenly didn't want to live without.

888

Things weren't going well.

This pink haired bitch deserved to rot in Hades. And to bring his Grandmother along too! She may be willing to bring him down for good, but he wasn't willing to bring _her_ down for Akatsuki. She had cared for him, looked after him. She'd wanted to make sure that he was alright, but she couldn't take the place of his parents, and he had joined Akatsuki to save others from the same life as him. He, and all the others in the Akatsuki had grown up too young. Sure enough, Deidara less so, the blonde was there of his own doing, and Sasori had to say that he was glad of that.

It was like he was there specially for him.

He couldn't stop his thoughts from turning to him now as he faced the pink kunoichi and his own Grandma. If the women were giving him this much hassle, how bad would Deidara be doing with the Jinchuriki and the Copy Ninja? Was he hurt?

Fear rippled through him at the notion, something that he hadn't felt it years. It had been so log since he had had something to lose. _So long_. And so little. And now he had something, someone who meant the world to him, and he wanted to lock him away forever, until he grew old and wrinkly and his hair turned white and he fell into sleep with wrinkles around a mouth that would be turned up right until the end. Deidara would die doing his art, but Sasori knew deep down that he didn't want to die alone.

Neither did Sasori.

But this was honestly pushing him to the limit. His Grandmother was far more skilled than he, and he had no desire to use underhand tactics with her. He _wasn't _a criminal. He could be a partner, lover, friend, something better.

It didn't matter that he wielded a hundred puppets, that this was the most feared and awed technique of all puppeteers. He'd become reliant again, he needed someone to take care of, and to take care of him. These women had pulled his last thread away, leaving his workings naked for them to read. He knew how this would end. It was inevitable really, and he didn't flinch from the chakra that hit him.

He reflected quietly, not fighting for his life, or for Deidara, or for anything less than that. It grew dark very quickly, and reminiscent of times past, he watched the stars, the beautiful pattern that he could always find or bright lights that he and Deidara had traced together, a small smile coating his lips up as a large white bird hovered above him.

And as thin arms lifted, his tired, broken, dying body, Sasori's last thoughts were of a beautiful blonde bomber that he would never have to live without.

**A/N - Whew! This is my first Sasori/Deidara fic and also my first request *happy face*. I really hope you enjoyed it Evangeline, and I am really sorry that it took so long. Hope I did the couple justice :L**

**I do not have a beta, so if I have any mistakes, tell me and I'll fix them ^.^**

**R&R Guys!**


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